The American Cancer Society hosted its third training for the Latin America Regional Health Grants Program June 14-19 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The three-year program aims to improve cancer control in the region through early detection. Twenty-eight representatives from 14 of the leading cancer control nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) participated in the training, funded by Pfizer, Inc., and the Pfizer Foundation, which focused on “Integrated Communications: Internal Management, Media Relations, and Expanding Impact.” The curriculum for the training was presented by a faculty consisting partly of cancer control experts outside the American Cancer Society, including Dan Rutz, team lead, Global Health Communication, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Adrian Huñis, MD, director and chief of oncology, Center of Oncology in Buenos Aires, Argentina; Rita Dardes, medical director, Avon Institute; and Chris Cardona and Jared Raynor, consultants for the TCC group. Robert Simpson, director, Latin America, Worldwide Public Affairs and Policy for Pfizer, presented and highlighted Pfizer's continued efforts to support patient programs throughout Latin America. American Cancer Society faculty included Nathan Grey, national vice president, International Affairs Department; Claudia Rodas, regional director of Government Operations – Gulf Coast; Alessandra Durstine, vice president, Regional Strategies, and director, Latin American Programs; and Cristina Parsons Perez, manager, Latin American Cancer Initiatives. The NGO representatives also visited the National Cancer Institute of Brazil and were welcomed by the director general, Luiz Antonio Santini Rodrigues da Silva. The fourth and final training of the Latin America Regional Health Grants Program will focus on advocacy and will take place in 2010 in Washington, D.C.

22 June 2009

Latin American fellows and American Cancer Society staff taking part in the Latin America Best Practices Fellowship Program.

Ten leaders of cancer control nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in Latin America recently took part in the Latin America Best Practices Fellowship Program. The event, which was held in Austin, Texas, was organized by the American Cancer Society International Affairs Department and the American Cancer Society High Plains Division. The fellows, from Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, and Guatemala, are winners of the 2007 and 2008 American Cancer Society Latin American Best Practices Awards, annual honors that recognize excellence in cancer patient care in the region. The four-day fellowship program provided these cancer control leaders the opportunity to learn from American Cancer Society staff about clinical trials, volunteerism, and patient navigation. The fellows also visited a Relay For Life® event held in Austin. Winners of the Latin American Best Practice Awards are selected via a competitive application process. About 200 applications have been submitted by Latin American cancer control organizations during the past two years. Along with the opportunity to engage in the fellowship experience, the winning organizations receive a grant to further strengthen their cancer control programs. The Latin America Best Practices Awards will be soliciting applications for its 2009 program starting later this summer.

The American Cancer Society, through its American Cancer Society University (ACSU) program, partnered with the ASCO Cancer Foundation and its International Development and Education Award (IDEA) program to pilot a training course for young oncologists from developing countries about their potential role in cancer control. The ACSU-ASCO pilot training course was held prior to the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) on May 29 in Orlando, Florida. American Cancer Society volunteers Stephen Sener, MD, and Rick Ngo, MD, assisted with the training course. The training sought to engage oncologists in cancer control in their countries and to provide them an opportunity to share ideas and make commitments in cancer control. Participants reviewed and discussed their role with cancer control nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in areas of advocacy, patient services, and prevention/detection, as well as their role with governments in national cancer planning. Prior to the training course, a three-week online session helped participants conduct research on cancer control NGOs and national cancer plans in their countries. Participants will send follow-up reports on their activities to ASCO in the next six to 12 months.

12 June 2009

Minister of Health of South Africa, Aaron Motsoaledi, MD, speaking at the World Economic Forum on Africa.

This week, during the World Economic Forum on Africa held in Cape Town, South Africa, the American Cancer Society played a key role in a special session on cancer and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in Africa. This session, co-organized with the World Health Organization, marked the first time that the issue of NCDs was included on the agenda at a World Economic Forum meeting. Johanna Ralston, vice president of Global Strategies for the American Cancer Society, facilitated a session of more than 50 representatives from government, the private sector, and nongovernmental organizations. The new minister of health of South Africa, Aaron Motsoaledi, MD, was among the speakers in the session, which focused heavily on cancer and the role of public-private partnerships in addressing NCDs. Tom Glynn, PhD, director of International Cancer Control for the American Cancer Society, facilitated another session at the conference on tobacco and the workplace.

10 June 2009

Many of the world’s leading stakeholders in cervical cancer prevention and detection met in New York City on June 2 to look at ways to coordinate efforts and resources to bring new prevention and detection tools to low- and middle-income countries, where cervical cancer kills more than 200,000 women each year. Johanna Ralston, vice president of Global Strategies for the American Cancer Society, delivered a presentation on how to ensure that cervical cancer is on the global agenda, building on the Society’s work in regions and as host of Cervical Cancer Action, a multi-stakeholder consortium of health nongovernmental organizations working in cervical cancer globally. Other speakers, including Dr. Jan Agosti of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Dr. Anna Nyakabau of the Ministry of Health of Zimbabwe, discussed new research around effectiveness and acceptability of screening in low-resource settings, as well as social, financial, and health systems challenges to rolling out the new technologies.